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Rural Health
Resources by Topic: Policy

Many Eligible Children Don't Participate in School Nutrition Programs: Reauthorization Offers Opportunities to Improve
Reports on rates of participation in the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program, comparing rural, urban, and suburban eligible households. Discusses reauthorization of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 as an opportunity to expand participation in these programs generally and particularly for rural eligible children.
Author(s): Jessica A. Carson
Date: 2015
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Carsey School of Public Policy
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Evaluating the HCIA - Behavioral Health/Substance Abuse Awards: First Annual Report
Evaluations of 10 Health Care Innovation Awards Round One projects focused on mental health and substance abuse services. Provides information on whether and how each project addressed the needs of underserved areas, including rural areas. One rural-focused project used telehealth to deliver services. Other projects provided transportation to help meet rural needs.
Date: 12/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Mathematica Policy Research
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Transportation Disadvantaged Populations: Nonemergency Medical Transportation Not Well Coordinated, and Additional Federal Leadership Needed
Discusses the federal programs that support nonemergency medical transportation (NEMT) and how coordination of these programs between federal agencies is limited. Coordination between state and local level NEMT services and the challenges that accompany NEMT coordination are reviewed.
Additional links: Full Report
Date: 12/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Government Accountability Office
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The State HIE Program Four Years Later: Key Findings on Grantees' Experiences from a Six-State Review
Provides information on health information exchange (HIE) efforts in six states: Iowa, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Utah, Vermont, and Wyoming. Includes the population density for each of those states and discusses supportive factors and challenges in implementing statewide HIE services, as well as sustainability.
Author(s): Prashila Dullabh, Petry Ubri, Lauren Hovey
Date: 12/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: NORC at the University of Chicago, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
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Impact of Home Health Payment Rebasing on Beneficiary Access to and Quality of Care
Measures the impact of base-payment reductions mandated by the Affordable Care Act on beneficiary access to and the quality of care provided by home health agencies. Reports findings across geographic area (rural and urban).
Date: 12/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
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State Innovation Models (SIM) Initiative Evaluation: Model Test Base Year Annual Report
First annual report on 6 states - Arkansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oregon, and Vermont - that received federal support in the first round of the State Innovation Model (SIM) initiative to design and implement health care innovation plans. Presents results of the first site visits to the states, including information from interviews and focus groups, and baseline data on care coordination, quality of care, healthcare utilization, and healthcare expenditures. Includes some discussion of issues specific to rural healthcare.
Date: 11/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, RTI International
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Access to Health Care in the U.S.-México Border Region: Challenges and Opportunities
Identifies ways in which the United States-Mexico Border Health Commission and other interested organizations can increase healthcare access for border populations in the U.S. Compares provisions of health reform in both countries to recognize potential binational public health collaborations. Discusses the socioeconomic challenges in healthcare access and the enrollment gaps in health insurance offered through the market place.
Date: 11/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organization: United States-México Border Health Commission
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Evaluation of Health Care Innovation Awards (HCIA): Primary Care Redesign Programs, First Annual Report
Evaluations of 14 Health Care Innovation Awards Round One projects focused on primary care redesign, addressing a range of intervention models, target populations, and organizational settings. Includes 2 rural-focused projects and 9 projects that included services to rural areas.
Date: 11/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Mathematica Policy Research
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Annual Report 1: HCIA Disease-Specific Evaluation
Evaluations of 18 Health Care Innovation Awards Round One projects targeting patient populations with specific diseases. Includes projects that serve a variety of rural areas and address conditions such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease. Approaches discussed include care coordination, education, and telehealth.
Date: 11/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, NORC at the University of Chicago
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HCIA Complex/High-Risk Patient Targeting: First Annual Report
Evaluations of 23 Health Care Innovation Awards Round One projects focused on patients with medically complex conditions at high risk for hospitalization, re-hospitalization, emergency department visits, or nursing home stays. Identifies several projects serving rural areas, including programs that use telehealth, in-home care, and various care coordination approaches.
Date: 11/2014
Type: Document
Sponsoring organizations: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, NORC at the University of Chicago
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